This resource was prepared for an Early Learning Challenge (ELC) State in response to a request for information about initiatives to improve the quality of child care and early education provided by family, friends, and neighbors in the 20 RTT-ELC States. This information will be helpful to other States as they consider how to continue to increase…

An increased level of collaboration is often a specific requirement for groups and agencies involved in complementary grant program activities. This ensures that programs with a common funding source are as efficient and effective as possible in areas where their missions converge. In this report, the authors highlight collaborative activities…

The history, philosophy, and importance of family support programs to enhance caregiving capacities of families with disabled children are recounted. Information from a survey of state family support programs is summarized, and successful aspects of Michigan's support subsidy are described. (CL)

"Moving the Needle on Poverty" is designed to provide Colorado leaders with an up-to-date picture of the diverse strategies that states across the nation are pursuing to lift individuals, families, and communities out of poverty. As the report indicates, many states are choosing to set specific and measurable goals for poverty reduction,…

This report highlights the North Central Regional Educational Laboratory (NCREL) states' efforts in integrated services and provides commentaries by experts on their experiences in the field. Steven Preister's "Overview" from Report No. 1 serves as the framework for the report, describing NCREL states' current and future agendas,…

"Childhood Programs and Practices in the First Decade of Life" presents research findings on the effects of early childhood programs and practices in the first decade of life and their implications for policy development and reform. Leading scholars in the multidisciplinary field of human development and in early childhood learning…

This report describes the recent efforts of Michigan's Division of Services to Crippled Children (DSCC) to assist families with handicapped children to develop their full potential for health, education, and self-support through the removal of physical, social, psychological, and economic barriers. DSCC functions are carried out at the local,…

This paper reports a survey of 1,283 Michigan families of children with severe mental impairment, multiple impairments, or autism, concerning the state's cash subsidy program. Families reported that the subsidy amount was adequate. The greatest need was for sitters and respite care, followed by life planning, speech and physical therapy, and…

"Family support" describes the philosophy of the Michigan Public Mental Health System. Family Support is also the name of a Michigan program that provides the supports that parents of children with developmental disabilities need to keep their families together. Services include respite care, client services management, parent and…

This analysis is the sixth of a series of seven reports on the ways that the urban fiscal crisis has affected children. Michigan's depressed economy, retrenchment of public finances, and attendant effects on local government have changed both the process of providing services to early adolescents and the nature of the services themselves. Despite…

In 1988, the Michigan Community Coordinated Child Care (4C) Association was established to help develop a statewide child care policy and to provide support to a network of 13 local and regional 4C agencies. One of the association's first major tasks was to describe the state of child care and related services in Michigan and to make…